No matter how many times it takes, he will always jump.
Everyone at Shiratorizawa is supporting him, he will certainly live up to those expectations, becoming the Shiratori that carries everyone across the abyss.
In this way.. I will live up to my title as the Ace!
Goshiki held his breath, his slightly puffed cheeks twisting from the force of his arm swing.
He opened his eyes, which burned like torches, piercing through the layers of thick mist to lock onto the only glimmer of light in that thick, suffocating space.
Bang!!
As the impact struck him head-on, Hinata grit his teeth and tensed his body, attempting to meet this force head-on.
If they could just block this one ball, the match would be over.
They still have to face such powerful enemies later, so they naturally want to conserve as much physical strength as possible..
The spinning volleyball was even more slippery and difficult to control than a direct spike; it grazed the surface of his arm and nearly slipped away from his control, flying toward the back.
Hinata's center of gravity was thrown off by this ball, he lost control, tumbling toward the ground.
Suna, who landed first, grabbed his arm and gave him a boost.
The sound of the ball hitting the floor echoed once again.
The ball, which was originally going to land inside the court, flew toward the back due to Hinata's touch; Unabara Uta chased after it at her fastest speed, but ultimately failed to reach it.
The whistle blew, Shiratorizawa scored.
Coach Saito stood up in excitement, "Yes!! Keep this momentum going!"
Goshiki Tsutomu, having landed on the ground, slowly exhaled, looking up slightly toward Hinata on the opposite side with a calm gaze. "It's not over yet. One more!"
Unabara Uta hurriedly apologized, "I'm so sorry!"
Waving a hand at Unabara Uta, Hinata turned to meet Goshiki Tsutomu's eyes, his words sincere yet cruel: "There won't be a next ball."
Goshiki Tsutomu suddenly let out a smile for no reason.
His voice was more relaxed than before, even carrying a hint of pleasant amusement.
“This..”
It's not up to you.
Before Hinata could say anything else, Goshiki Tsutomu had already turned his head and walked over to Position 2 to prepare for the next part of the match.
Hinata pouted, when Rishia looked over, he said seriously, "But I think I'm the one who gets to decide."
Rishia replied, "I think so too."
Nice serve!
The members of Shiratorizawa cheered loudly for Kawanishi.
It was undeniable that Kawanishi was very nervous right now.
Once he makes a serve error, that final point will be given to Inarizaki.
If that were the case.. he would never forgive himself for the rest of his life.
Not only must he avoid losing points, but he must also do everything in his power to deliver the best serves, striving to break through the opponent's defense or even score points directly.
He is not only the Captain personally appointed by Coach Washijo, but he is also a Third Year senior.
After Shirabu retired, he was the only Third Year left on the court. He could no longer be as carefree as before with the support of Shirabu and Goshiki; he had to demonstrate his presence as a senior.
Kawanishi cheered himself on internally, lightly spinning the volleyball in his hands before tapping it against the floor.
It's fine, he can do it.
When he counted to five in his mind, Kawanishi tossed the ball up, stepped forward quickly, jumped before the baseline.
He couldn't perform a serve like Miya Atsumu's, which could almost pin the jump position at about five centimeters in front of the baseline, but he had plenty of confidence when it came to "spiking it down."
The sound of the hit rang out, the volleyball instantly flew over the net, smashing into Inarizaki's back row.
Eyes fixed on the ball's trajectory, Unabara Uta stepped forward, shifting his weight onto one leg, precisely positioned her forearms beneath the ball.
With a loud thud, the force and spin of the volleyball were absorbed, it dropped steadily toward Miya Atsumu's position in the front row.
“Beautiful!”
Miya Atsumu lowered his center of gravity slightly, preparing to jump and set the ball, when at that moment, he felt an incredibly intense gaze coming from not far away.
Without a moment's hesitation, Miya Atsumu changed to a one-handed set the moment he jumped, sending the ball out with a touch that was almost nothing more than his fingertips.
Hinata, who had already jumped over there, precisely caught the ball and also spiked it with the fastest spike speed, driving it straight down and slamming it into the ground over the shortest distance.
The speed of the entire set and spike was so fast that Akakura's eyes couldn't even keep up; by the time he snapped out of it, the ball had already hit the ground.
After a short whistle, a long, sustained tone echoed throughout the entire gym.
Goshiki Tsutomu's breath hitched.
It was too fast, so fast that he hadn't even prepared himself to face this defeat.
He clenched his fists, only to slowly relax them as he exhaled a long breath.
No, he had actually foreseen this outcome long ago.
Shiratorizawa still has many deficiencies at the moment, so their defeat in this match is entirely to be expected.
Go back and watch the footage of this match carefully; it will be difficult for Shiratorizawa to encounter an offensive team as strong as this one again in the future..
Goshiki Tsutomu turned around, clapping his hands to call everyone to line up.
And on the opposite side, Hinata turned around without a moment's hesitation after landing, raising his hands as he rushed toward Miya Atsumu: "Atsumu-ge, great play!"
Miya Atsumu leaned down slightly and picked Shoyo up directly: "Great play, Shoyo!"
Suna glanced at Miya Atsumu, after Miya Atsumu put Hinata down, he also went over to give Hinata and Miya Atsumu a hug.
Miya Osamu understood the situation and came over to give the three of them a hug as well.
Unabara Uta didn't move, but Tokura thought it was some kind of ritual and dragged Rishia along to hug several people as well.
Hinata was a bit dazed, but he still responded to everyone with considerable enthusiasm.
But Miya Atsumu's expression was distorted.
That damn Miya Osamu, he got all that stinky sweat all over him! He just dropped a towel! Does he really have to retaliate like that!
"Alright, alright, line up, line up—" Miya Atsumu struggled to pull himself out of the crowd.
But no one listened to him, the Captain; in fact, a hand even pulled him back.
Kita Shinsuke smiled from the stands, while Aran beside him took a group photo of himself and everyone on the court with his phone.
Aran felt a bit of regret. "What a shame, I'm not there this time."
He could already imagine Miya Atsumu's expression, twisted in disgust at their body odor.
The players from both sides lined up across the court and bowed in thanks at the Head Referee's signal.
Thank you for the game!!
Thank you for the game!!
Stepping up to the net, Hinata extended his hand toward Goshiki Tsutomu: "Let's fight again next time!"
Goshiki Tsutomu nodded solemnly: "Alright!"
After shaking hands with Goshiki and the next person, Hinata felt a slight sense of regret.
The goal he and Atsumu had set at the beginning.. it seems they didn't achieve it.
But it doesn't matter; next time, he will definitely, definitely make Goshiki cry!
Coach Washijo stood up and looked at the Shiratorizawa members as they approached, his face expressionless.
Everyone came to a halt. Coach Washijo stood with his hands behind his back and said softly, "You played quite well, but your defense was too unrefined."
Yosuke and Umi, go back and practice on your own, Taichi, your blocking was absolutely terrible.
Kawanishi Taichi stood at attention, taking his scolding honestly.
In the silence, Coach Washijo looked toward Goshiki Tsutomu. "Tsutomu, you played well."
Goshiki Tsutomu was stunned, but before he could say anything, the Coach's next words followed immediately: "Your technical play is a bit crude; go back and study it more."
Hearing the coach's rare, calm voice, Goshiki Tsutomu stood at attention. "Yes, sir!"
Coach Saito smiled along and clapped his hands. "Alright, let's go thank the cheering area for traveling all this way."
As the team left the court area and headed toward the cheering area, Shirabu glanced back at Goshiki Tsutomu and said, "Just as the Coach said, you played well."
Goshiki, whose emotions had remained calm and steady, suddenly widened his eyes; having felt a lack of reality due to the match ending so abruptly, he felt a sudden sense of loss at this moment.
That's right, this is.. the end.
Goshiki Tsutomu opened his mouth.
Seeing that he wanted to say something, Shirabu also paused his steps slightly and turned his head to look at him.
Clenching his shorts, Goshiki Tsutomu finally mustered the courage to take a step forward: "Um! Shirabu-senpai!"
“Am I.. more reliable than before!”
Shirabu froze for a moment, then turned his head and stopped looking at Goshiki Tsutomu.
Goshiki took two quick steps, landing half a step beside Shirabu, faintly saw the slight curve of the other man's lips.
You have to keep working hard, our Ace.
His vision blurred in an instant, Goshiki subconsciously stopped in his tracks, letting the tears overflow from his eyes and stream down.
Yura, at the very back, walked up behind Goshiki and asked, "Goshiki Tsutomu-senpai? What's wrong?"
Goshiki raised a hand to wipe away the tear on his chin and shook his head. "It's nothing. I'm leaving."
Thank you all for your support!!
Watching everyone return, Coach Kurosu gave his final summary: "Everyone worked hard today. There is still the match between Rakusan and Shirabu coming up; those who want to watch can stay, if you're feeling tired and want to go back to rest, just let me know."
Post-match stretching is still being held in the Sub-gymnasium.
Be careful and stay safe. The weather is turning cold now, so make sure to dress warmly.